Advertising-sign.



SET 1.

PATENTED MAY 2, 1905.

H. J. VAN HAAGEN.

ADVERTISING SIGN.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 3. 1897.

2 SHEETS-SH PATENTED MAY 2, 1905.

H. J. VAN HAAGEN.

ADVERTISING SIGN.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 3. 1897.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

NiTED STATES Patented May 2, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

ADVERTISING-SIGN.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 788,967, dated May 2, 1905.

Application filed May 3, 1897 Serial No. 634,833.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY J. VAN HAAGEN, a citizen of the United States, residing at New York, county and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Advertising-Signs, fully described and represented in the following specification and the accompanying drawings, forming a part of the same.

My invention relates to advertising-signs, and has for its object the utilization to the utmost of available space for advertising purposes.

At the present time desirable advertisingspace, especially in crowded cities, is found insufficient for the demands of advertising, and I propose by the use of my invention to practically multiply the available advertisingspace. I propose to accomplish this by an arrangement which shall present at the same point of view a succession of different advertisements at successive short intervals of time. Each advertisement will be displayed long enough to permit its inspection by observers, when it will be replaced by another advertisement, which in turn will be after a brief interval replaced by another and in due course by the one firstdisplayed. Thus each advertisements. will be presented with suflicient frequency for the observation of practically all persons who would see the same if it were continuously displayed. Moreover, the successive appearance and disappearance of the advertisement will attract attention, so that the advertisement will be much more effective for that reason than if it remained continuously in position.

My invention may also be employed for displaying other things than advertisements-as, for instance, pictures or ornamental decoration or scenery on the stage.

I secure the results above mentioned by forming the advertising-space of the surfaces of a number of prismatic rods. One surface is made up of one face of each of the rods. This surface presents one advertisement or picture, the surface of each rod corresponding to that advertisement having upon it a section of the advertisement.

A second face of each of the rods make up together a second advertising-space. A third surface of each of the rods make up athird advertising-space, and so on. Three faces for each of the rods is a convenient number of faces, but I do not confine myself to that number. I cause the rods to move in unison for the purpose of presenting at intervals diflerent faces by means of proper mechanism. I do not limit myself to any particular form of mechanism. One form which I find it convenient to employ consists of a spring which is connected by gearing or otherwise with each of the rods and gives the latter a tendency to rotate. Their rotation is, however, restrained by the contact of a catch with a stop. The catch is intermittently withdrawn by means of clockwork at short intervals, permitting the rotation of the rods under tension of the spring.

My invention also consists in details of construction which are shown in the drawings and referred to in the specification and which will be pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 represents a face View of my mechanism, showing the rods forming by the conjunction of their faces the advertising-space. Fig. 2 is a sectional view through the inclosing case and operating mechanism on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a rear view with the back of the case removed. Fig. 5 is a front view of the actuating mechanism. Fig. 6 is an end view of the same, taken from the left of Fig. 5. Fig. 7 is a sectional view on the line 7 7 of Fig. 5. Figs. 8 and 9 show a modification.

The rods A have at each end a pivotal projection, which rotates freely in corresponding holes in the strips B B. The pivotal projections (3 from one end of the rods are bent to form a crank and pass through holes in a connecting-rod D. This connecting-rod is given a movement of revolution by the crank-shaft E, which carries on one end a miter gearwheel F, engaging with another miter-gear F on the shaft G. The shaft G is driven by intermitting gears from a spring under tension H. On the shaft Gr is mounted a disk I, which carries mounted within it at intervals several J with the stop K checks the rotation of the crank shaft under stress of the spring H. These catches are intermittently pressed backward toward the center of the disk I by means of a pivoted lever L, operated by the clockwork shown in the right-hand part of Fig. 5. This clockwork is continuously in rotation and moves a toothed wheel M, into which the tail L of the lever L is pressed by the spring N. The other end of the lever L has a position just outside of the path of the pins y' when the tail of the lever is resting in one of the notches in the wheel M. 1 I

The outer end of the lever L is provided with a pivoted portion L held in the position shown by a spring L This pivoted piece L is, as is shown in plan view, Fig. 9, free to move inward against the spring L. This construction is not essential to the operation of the device, but is desirable for this reason: If the teeth of the wheel M be not cut with perfect exactness, it may happen that the disk I may be released before the tail L reaches the highest point to which it is pressed by a tooth. In that case the next pin j will strike against the forward end of the lever L. The spring L then permits the part L to yield, when the tail L drops into the succeeding notch, and thereupon the pivoted piece L falls into position beneath the pin as shown in Figs. 5 and 8. Assuming the position of the mechanism to be that shown in Fig. 5, the rotation of the wheel M will gradually push out the tail L of the lever L, at the same time raising it to press back one of the springseated catches J. WVhen the wheel M is moved far enough to cause L to rest upon the point of one of its teeth, the front end of the lever L will be lifted sufficiently to move the catch J above the stop K. The disk I will now be free to rotate under the stress of the spring H and will give rotation through the miter gear-wheels F F to the crank-shaft E and the rods A. As soon as the tail of the lever L is past the tooth which has pushed it out it drops into the next recess and the front end of the lever L is depressed. The movement of the disk I continues until the next catch J strikes the stop K, when its movement is arrested, and it is held in such position until the tail L of the lever L is again pushed out by the next tooth of the wheel M, when the operation is repeated. At each release of the disk I and its rotation for the space between two of the catches J the rods A will be caused to simultaneously move, through the operation of the crank-shaft E and the connecting-rod D, sov as to present simultaneously a new face. Preferably the revolution of the wheel M is so timed that release of the disk I will occur at intervals of about a minute, so that a change will be made in the advertisement displayed by the mechanism at like intervals.

Other means than those above described may be used for rotating the rods without departing from my invention. Thus, for instance, electrical apparatus might be employed for this purpose.

In Figs. 8 and 9 is shown a modified form of the device for tripping the lever L, which is adapted according to adjustment to give different rates of movement to the rods. This device consists of several sleeves P Q R, held by set-screws to a vertical shaft S, which gears with the clockwork. These sleeves are each provided on their lower face with teeth, as shown, which engage with the tail L. As shown, the sleeve P has two teeth, the sleeve Q, four teeth, and the sleeve R eight teeth. The tail L is caused to engage the sleeve on a radial line parallel with the axis of the lever in order that the distance between the pivotal point and the bearingrpoint of the tail L may be the same whichever one of the sleeves is engaged. The interval of movement of the rods will be determined by the fact as to whether one or the other of the sleeves P Q R are in the depressed position.

Other forms of the tooth-carrying mechanism for operating the lever L, as well as other forms of the various other parts of the apparatus besides thoseshown, may be used without departing from my invention.

What I claim is 1. The combination of a series of rods placed side by side said rods having two or more faces and the corresponding faces of the several rods being provided each with a section of an advertisement or other legend or picture whereby when all of the faces are presented together a complete advertisement or picture will be displayed, mechanism placing the rod under tension to move, spring-catches for arresting the rod, a trip-lever for operating the catches and clock mechanism for operating the triplever, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination of a rotary member, means tending to rotate said member, a stop, a series of spring-pressed catches carried by the rotary member for engaging the stop to arrest the rotation of said member, a trip-lever L, means for operating said lever at intervals, and a spring-pressed yielding piece L carried by said lever for engaging said catches, substantially as set forth.

3. The combination of a series of rods placed side by side said rods having two or more faces and the corresponding faces of the several rods being provided each with a section of an advertisement or other legend or picture whereby when all of the faces are presented together a complete advertisement or picture will be displayed, a spring placing the rods under tension to move, catches for arresting the rods, a'- trip-lever L for operating the catches and clock mechanism giving movement to a series of adjustable notched faces one or the other of which may be adjusted in position as desired for operating the trip-lever, substantially as I set forth.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of the two subscribing witnesses.

HENRY J. VAN HAAGEN.

Witnesses:

G. M. BERST, T. F. KEHoE. 

